Hydroponic Gardening Today » Systems

How do I build a passive hydroponic vegetable gardening system?

admin — Fri, 16 May 2008 11:15:16 +0000

The passive hydroponic vegetable gardening system is the simplest of the systems, as it requires minimal maintenance on the part of the gardener. The steps to build a passive system are fairly straightforward:
1.    A large container is obtained and filled with nutrient solution.
2.    The lid to the container is modified to allow the plastic planters to be suspended the in the container so that the base well within the solution.
3.    Airline stones and airline hose are placed so that the stones will be directly under the plastic planters.
4.    A planting medium is placed in the planters and the plants are planted into the medium.
5.    The roots of the plants are submerged completely with the nutrient solution
6.    An airpump is connected to the airline hose and bubbles are permitted to agitate the solution under the plants.
Since this method does not expose the roots of the plants to any air, oxygen must be introduced into the solution. The air stones underneath the plastic planters accomplish this.

This is the basic setup for the passive system. Once built, the other factors to consider are the pH of the nutrient solution, the temperature of the solution, and the quality of lighting that the system is receiving.
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What are some other hydroponic vegetable gardening systems?

admin — Tue, 13 May 2008 02:06:47 +0000

There are several other types of hydroponic systems for use with hydroponic vegetable gardening; Drip, NFT, and Aeroponic. There are several variations of each of these systems and they can be used in combination.
Drip systems are probably the most common hydroponic system in use today. They are fairly straightforward; a timer controls a submerged pump, the pump drips nutrient solution directly onto the base of the plants. If there is a recovery system of some kind, the excess solution is recaptured for later use, otherwise it runs off to a disposal drain.
A drip system with a recovery system allows for more efficient use of nutrient solution as it can be recaptured, and it allows for a bit of play in the precision of the watering pump. The downside of course, is that the pH of the nutrient reservoir needs to be monitored where as it remains fairly constant when there is no recycled nutrient solution introduced into the mix.
NFT systems use a constant flow of nutrient solution over the plant base. No timers are involved for the submerged pump. The solution is pumped into the growing tray and flows over the roots before draining back into the reservoir.
NFT systems use no growing medium aside from air. This cuts down on costs for the total system. The plants are suspended above the fluid with the roots dangling into the nutrient solution.
Aeroponic systems are beyond the scope of most home users. This system involves misting the roots of the plants with nutrient solution every few minutes. As with most of the other types of systems, a timer is involved in keeping things running smoothly.
Check back next time to learn more about hydroponic vegetable gardening.

What is a hydroponic system I can build?

admin — Sun, 11 May 2008 02:16:37 +0000

Building an Ebb and Flow Hydroponic Vegetable Gardening System
The system commonly known as an ebb and flow system is one of the easiest hydroponic systems to build yourself. A quick trip to a local hardware store and a gardening supply store should be all you need to find all of the required parts to build your system. The basic design is as follows:
1.    A reservoir containing the nutrient solution is located below a tray with the growing medium and plants in it.
2.    The tray contains growing medium such as Rockwool, grow rocks, perlite/vermiculite or possibly even coconut fibers.
3.    The bed is periodically flooded with nutrient solution by using a small pump on a timer.
4.    The timer turns the pump back off and the solution drains back to the reservoir.
5.    It is important to locate the tray above the reservoir as gravity will handle the draining of the excess solution from the tray back into the reservoir.
6.    As the roots are exposed to air during each cycle, oxygen is drawn in to the root zone providing additional plant requirements.
7.    Excess flooding can be prevented by adding a drain to the tray at the highest point the nutrient fluids should ever reach. This drain can then be plumbed back onto the reservoir.
It may sound complicated but its pretty straightforward. Remember, its just a tray with a drain on it that flows down into a reservoir of nutrient solution. A small pump on a timer floods the tray 4 times a day, and the fluid drains out allowing air to reach the roots.
Check back next time to learn more about your hydroponic vegetable garden.